| “Aikido is the principle of nonresistance. Because it is nonresistant it is victorious from the beginning. Those with evil intentions or contentious thoughts are instantly vanquished.” -Morihei Ueshiba |
Aikido was founded by a man named Morihei Ueshiba, now called O-Sensei (“Great Teacher”). O-Sensei was born in 1883 in the Wakayama Prefecture of Japan. After seeing his father assaulted by political opponents, O-Sensei sought to make himself strong. He studied under masters in many traditional martial arts, eventually becoming an expert at a number of styles of jujitsu (unarmed combat), kenjitsu (swordfighting), and sojitsu (spear fighting). Along with his martial arts studies he also engaged in a large amount of religious and philosophical studies.
The creation of Aikido occurred as a result of an incident in 1925. During a discussion about martial arts, a dispute between O-Sensei and a naval officer, who was a fencing instructor, developed. O-Sensei was challenged by the officer, and he attacked O-Sensei with a boken (woodensword). Unarmed O-Sensei confronted the officer and continually avoided each strike until the officer collapsed from exhaustion. This was later described by O-Sensei as the beginning of his enlightenment. He had managed to defeat an armed attacker without hurting him, without even touching him.
O-Sensei continued to practice and teach Aikido into his old age. He was still giving public demonstrations of Aikido at age 86, four months before his death in 1969.
O-Sensei’s grandson, has inherited the title Doshu (Leader of the Way). He continues his grandfather’s work at Aikido World Headquarters (called Hombu Dojo) in Tokyo.
Aikido is currently practiced in over fifty countries by men, women, and children.
